What am I doing wrong ?

[Altheo]

As some of you will know from my very first post I have to dispose of all the machines in my hobby workshop. Some have already gone to private buyers and the feedback I've had is that they are all pleased with their purchases. However, there are still a lot of machines which have to go.

So far I've tried advertising only a couple of them on the forum but have received no positive response, so something's going wrong or I'm just being impatient. Maybe I'm not getting the prices right - I admit to being pretty clueless about used machine pricing although I've used eBay as a guide - or possibly it's my location as I prefer possible customers to see the machines before they buy.

Give me a clue. I'd welcome any advice; be as frank as you like, I'm fairly thick ( skinned ).

 

[carlb40]

I'm wondering if the lack of postage options are putting members off? Couriers work out a lot cheaper than you think and compared to royal mail.

I use parcel 2 go now when selling especially on ebay.

 

[rspsteve]

+1 for parcel to go.

 

[marcros]

I have used myhermes directly lately- it is a bit quicker because they only want to know the weight category and ask you to confirm that the sizes fit the criteria- saves weighing and measuring most if what I send. It also saves me the 2% surcharge for PayPal that p2g charge.

 

[Rhossydd]

From what I can see you've only offered two items so far.

1. The router lathe;
This is a pretty obscure bit of kit, so you won't get a lot of interest in it even if a complete bargain. The photo you posted really doesn't give much guidance for condition and specification.

2. The Elu 177 router.
Elu kit tends to get good prices if in good condition and complete.
Again the photo you supply gives little real indication of condition and what's included in the sale.
It also looks like it's a 177E with electronic speed control. That speed control makes all the difference in usability and price.
"20 or so carbide tipped bits. Most of the popular profiles" that's really little help. 20 cutters could be worth £30 or £300 depending on condition and profile.
Does the sale include any fences, guides, extra collets, instructions, spanners etc ? These sorts of extras add up if you need to buy them, if they're missing the value falls.
Looking at eBay prices; 177s have gone for as little £45 up to £200 for immaculate ones complete with all their original accessories, plus some of the good extras like depth adjusters and cases. So £200 for the one in your photo seems rather expensive.

So I'd suggest giving a lot more detail of what's included in your offers with more and better photos. Then potential buyers can get an idea if the prices you're asking are reasonable.
As others have pointed out, the need to collect items greatly restricts the number of potential buyers too, you're unlikely to get top prices with that limitation.
Finally, I'm relatively new here myself, but I've got the impression that kit sells here very much for 'mate's rate' prices as people want their surplus kit to go to good appreciative homes, rather than just trying to squeeze as much from a sale as possible.

 

[Altheo]

I'm wondering if the lack of postage options are putting members off? Couriers work out a lot cheaper than you think and compared to royal mail.

I use parcel 2 go now when selling especially on ebay.

Thanks for that, you're probably right. It still seems a bit alien, to me, to buy something before seeing it.

 

[Altheo]

From what I can see you've only offered two items so far.

1. The router lathe;
This is a pretty obscure bit of kit, so you won't get a lot of interest in it even if a complete bargain. The photo you posted really doesn't give much guidance for condition and specification.

2. The Elu 177 router.
Elu kit tends to get good prices if in good condition and complete.
Again the photo you supply gives little real indication of condition and what's included in the sale.
It also looks like it's a 177E with electronic speed control. That speed control makes all the difference in usability and price.
"20 or so carbide tipped bits. Most of the popular profiles" that's really little help. 20 cutters could be worth £30 or £300 depending on condition and profile.
Does the sale include any fences, guides, extra collets, instructions, spanners etc ? These sorts of extras add up if you need to buy them, if they're missing the value falls.
Looking at eBay prices; 177s have gone for as little £45 up to £200 for immaculate ones complete with all their original accessories, plus some of the good extras like depth adjusters and cases. So £200 for the one in your photo seems rather expensive.

So I'd suggest giving a lot more detail of what's included in your offers with more and better photos. Then potential buyers can get an idea if the prices you're asking are reasonable.
As others have pointed out, the need to collect items greatly restricts the number of potential buyers too, you're unlikely to get top prices with that limitation.
Finally, I'm relatively new here myself, but I've got the impression that kit sells here very much for 'mate's rate' prices as people want their surplus kit to go to good appreciative homes, rather than just trying to squeeze as much from a sale as possible.

That's good advice that I'll try to take on board, thanks. I'm really not trying to make a lot of money, just trying to recoup some of my original investment. Some of the machines are quite bulky and probably more than a one-man lift which is what I suspect the couriers would require. I have no experience of using couriers which will be my next hurdle.

 

[Random Orbital Bob]

+1 to the last poster. You need to think we live in the information age and every bit of kit you sell can be cross referenced in an instant using google and of course the ever present e-bay. That means that its commodity value is instantly available to buyers. Thus in order to garner interest you need to take some time and trouble to represent your items in a manner that demonstrates their worth. Good photography, generous descriptions of their date of manufacture and "hardness of life" etc etc. Make it easy for the buyer to say yes and recall we're in a business climate where the qty of goods being shipped unseen is growing exponentially due to the Internet connecting buyers and sellers. You sound like you have quite a lot of decent kit after I read your first post. I then had an expectation of loads of pictures of lovely tools, I was even looking forward to it if I'm frank! But nothing was forthcoming so my suggestion is up the anti a bit and you'll find plenty of avid buyers on this forum. Its a special interest group with a prodigious appetite for tools

 

[RogerP]

Thanks for that, you're probably right. It still seems a bit alien, to me, to buy something before seeing it.

With the inter-web it's become the norm over the past few years, most sellers give a guarantee to refund if not as described.

 

[wobblydoggy]

I'm in Bridgend so what do you have left?

 

[Altheo]

I'm glad I asked the question, the answer to which is apparently " almost everything ". I should now be relegated to a corner of a room wearing a conical hat with a capital " D " on it.
My grateful thanks to those who took the time and trouble to educate me in the ways of presentation and salesmanship, I will try harder in the future.